The thought of a chairman openly discussing the prospect of relegation seems to have become a hoodoo in the world of football.

It's as if as soon as the word ‘Championship’ leaves anyone associated with a Premier League club’s mouth, you are dooming the remainder of what is a long and often unpredictable season.

And this could not have be more apparent when Palace chairman Steve Parish was quoted saying he was planning for a season in the second tier of English football when August comes around.

Crystal Palace Chairman, Steve Parish speaks on stage interviewed by James Pearce during the Sport Industry Breakfast Club at the BT Centre on February 28, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Jack Thomas/Getty Images for Sport Industry Breakfast Club)

It goes without saying this was all taken out of context and Parish brilliantly rubbished any hints that he was looking ahead with any sort of pessimism with a post on social media.

I have been hugely critical of Parish in the past – mostly around his transfer policy in recent seasons and his disastrous appointment of a certain Dutch coach last summer.

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However, when you take a step back and see where we are and more importantly, where we have been, you cannot question Parish’s commitment to the club he has always supported and the huge success we have enjoyed in the past five years – albeit it being a bumpy road along the way.

The new Main Stand developments was in fact what spurred Parish to discuss next season with questions being asked whether it would still go ahead with the huge lack of income subsequently following relegation.

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Fortunately, it is looking as if it will go ahead as planned with Parish looking at other options of funding the monumental project.

And this is what I have grown to hugely admire about the man pulling the strings as SE25.

Not only his complete obsession with making Palace the club it so can be, but his very real and reasonable thinking about how we progress, even when things don’t go our way on the pitch.

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Roy Hodgson has done a magnificent job at Palace and any doubts fans might have had about his appointment are well and truly eliminated.

The bizarre injury crisis he is currently managing is the only reason we are not toying with mid-table – of that I am convinced.

It’s because of having an entire starting 11 being repaired that we are in a very real situation whereby relegation does look more probable than not.

Crystal Palace's English manager Roy Hodgson gestures ahead of the English Premier League football match between Crystal Palace and Tottenham Hotspur at Selhurst Park in south London on February 25, 2018. (Photo credit should read IAN KINGTON/AFP/Getty Images)

Therefore, the club simply must put in a contingency plan if we are to find ourselves going to Ipswich on a Tuesday night in October.

Relegation is of course the very worst feeling we as fans can feel as we head into summer.

However, the club is bigger than a drop in league and as difficult as it can be to get out of the Championship, putting a plan in place to see the core of the club grow as we target a return to the top flight is vital.

Of course, this all may be premature and could be looked upon as a tad over dramatic.

And of course, we have a long way to go with plenty of winnable games still to come.